


Gabriel the Joker

by Naaklasolus



Series: Unsung Heroes: Hellions [25]
Category: Star Wars Legends: Republic Commando Series - Karen Traviss, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe, Fluff and Angst, Gabriel Has Issues, Kal's a decent dad, Originally Posted on Tumblr, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-24
Updated: 2018-10-24
Packaged: 2019-08-06 18:01:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 644
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16392452
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Naaklasolus/pseuds/Naaklasolus
Summary: During the aftermath of Umbara, Kal Skirata receives a visit from one of his boys.





	Gabriel the Joker

Kal Skirata quietly read through the report about Pong Krell’s execution from his very own commander, as well as the psych report on both the Padawan and the troops. It disgusting at how blind the Jedi could be to something like this, the damn Padawan wasn’t any older Rav’s baby girl but here she was, fighting to keep her battalion together and protect the commander from the Kaminoans.

Kal glanced up as he heard a knock to find one of his boys standing there. “Gabriel?” Kal asked as he set the datapad down and smiled at the young clone who seemed a bit hesitant. “I’m not going to bite, son.”.

“I know that, Pops..” Gabriel said cheerfully as he leaned against the doorjamb, arms folded across his chest in a more guarded way then casual -- although Kal had to admit it was rather convincing. “Ajax mentioned that you like to keep names of your deceased cadets. I mean, I know we ain’t your prized ARCs or commandos but I.....”.

“It doesn’t matter to me what type of clone you are, Gabriel. All of you are still my boys.” Kal assured the captain who hummed in response as he rubbed the back of his neck. “How many?”.

“Twelve. There’s a lot more though.” Gabriel answered as without the usual bounce to his step which raised a red flag for Kal. Gabriel was always moving, his excitment and joy was always there until now. “A majority of the unit are Vau, Deska and Vizlsla trained so the losses were far heavier for them then you.”.

“Tally marks represent that, I assume?” Kal asked as he noticed a few fresh ones on one of Gabriel’s gauntlets.

“Bingo.” Gabriel looked down at the tally marks and sighed. “It’s a tradition. Way of rememberance, y’know?”.

“This could’ve been avoided.”.

“Can’t change the past.” Gabriel pointed out as he handed a datachip over to Kal and leaned against the desk. “It doesn’t matter now. Reaper finally snapped and dealt with Krell.”

“Of course it matters, Gabe.” Kal counters as he grabbed the younger man’s arm. “Don’t think I have noticed the way you’re acting. Do you want to talk about it?”.

“Rather not, Sarge. I......It was a bad idea to come here, I just......”.

“Just what, son?”.

Gabriel let out a sigh as he shook his head. “I wanted to see you. I just.....I’m finally free as I can get in this damn life and the first thing I do is come and find you.” Gabriel mutters as he slid down to the floor and sat there with his back against it, looking at the older man with tear brimmed golden-brown eyes. “Pretty stupid, right?”.

Kal chuckled at that as he reached down and carded his hand through Gabriel’s dark brown hair, much to the poor lad’s surprise. “Not at all. Like I said, doesn’t matter what type of clone you are, each of you are one of my boys. I ain’t angry at you, Gabriel, I’m angry at that chakaar for what he did to you and your siblings.” Kal said kindly as Gabriel leaned towards him. “You did a great job keeping up the fight for as long as you did.”.

Gabriel chuckled weakly. “Humor is the best shield, Pops. Anything can hide behind a smile.” Gabriel looked away again. “After the war, can we go home?”.

Kal chuckle at that. “There’s the Gabe I know.” Kal chimes as he ruffled the lad’s hair, smiling a bit. “And yes, when the war’s over, we’ll be going home and I’ll find you a nice Mando girl.”.

“More like Rav would, your taste in women is bloody awful.”.

Kal could deal with Gabriel avoiding his issues, that was no problem. He knew that the jokester was only just learning to trust again and he was willing to wait.

**Author's Note:**

> To all readers, I hope you enjoyed this!
> 
> Additional Notes:
> 
> \- Gabriel is named after and inspired by everybody's favorite trickster from SPN.


End file.
